From The Brooklyn Paper:The City Council voted last week to rezone a vacant Wythe Avenue lot in Williamsburg, paving the way for a new six-story apartment complex near S. Second Street that will includes the latest clubhouse of Manhattan tastemaker Taavo Somer, co-owner of the Lower East Side restaurant Freeman’s and West Village hangout The Rusty Knot.
The Council’s nod is a reversal of the community board’s recommendation to reduce the number of units on the site. Borough President Markowitz and the City Planning Commission had signed off on the plan, which will include two buildings, one with 59 market-rate units and the other containing 18 below-market rate units.
21 comments:
The Community Boards are a failure and primarily serve the developers and their lawyers to push through over development while sheilding the city council from criticism and public outrage. It's a stage but should be a bully pulpit to stop the further destruction of
queens. They should be done away with and save the taxpayers tons of money. At least term limit them!
Unless community boards have real voting power what's the use---to eat up our tax money just to put on a show?
They have tremendous value as an open forum for the public to voice their concerns and opinions---but they are being offered as a placebo to citizens in lieu of real participation in government?
Community boards are like "company unions" with no real collective bargaining power.
Something has got to change.
CBs offer opportunities for lucrative employment to clubhouse darlings.
i.e.
CB#7's district manager Marilyn Bitterman gets about $85,000 a year...uh...to do what?
H-m-m-m-m....then there are those Wellington Chen (?) perks that come with that job.
Dump ALL community boards and let each city council member hold monthly public meetings where constituents can vote.
Then let them tally up the votes on any proposed development project and carry your decision to the floor of council!
Put responsibility right in the lap of your elected officials instead of providing a buffer zone of community board buffoons to be the flack hacks for city hall!
Take a good look at CB#7...probably the most shady of all the city's boards.
But attending a performance of the Chuck & Gene show sure beats sitting at home watching TV.
Welcome to the "Blowhole Theater" folks!
Seating is limited so be sure to come in early.
Why is this news? CBs have always been just advisory. The City (the government of all) has the final say as to what should go forth.
Why is this news? Well, let's see. The community board recommended fewer units, likely due to the normal problems with school and subway overcrowding, lack of services, etc. and the council member, boro prez and city planning commissioner said fuck you, we like this developer. Yeah, I think that makes this news.
CB#7's district manager Marilyn Bitterman gets about $85,000 a year...uh...to do what?
Who the hell are you to judge the CB7 Community Board manager? She works her butt off and I've personally seen this for myself. Just because the Chuck and Gene Show is suspicious, don't point fingers at someone who gets things done for the community. Conclusion? She earns her salary. Unless you visit the CB7 office and can tell me otherwise, shut your piehole.
By arbitrarily denying FOIL requests?
By arbitrarily denying FOIL requests?
Really? My bad.
They are NOT elected. They are a joke, just a racketeering booster club that gives a mirage of representation, just like civics, invented by politicians to campaign for them. You get promoted by how much you kiss up. The only way to make them effective is to make school boards, city council seats, police precincts and community boards coterminous. People get confused with too many representatives. Elect one and dump them is they screw up. Now they just point fingers at each other. Turn RICO on civis and community boards!
CB#7's district manager Marilyn Bitterman gets about $85,000 a year...uh...to do what?
Who the hell are you to judge the CB7 Community Board manager? She works her butt off and I've personally seen this for myself. Just because the Chuck and Gene Show is suspicious, don't point fingers at someone who gets things done for the community. Conclusion? She earns her salary. Unless you visit the CB7 office and can tell me otherwise, shut your piehole.
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YES SHE DOES WORK HARD. PROTECTING GENE AND CHUCK , BEING RUDE TO CIVIC LEADERS, AND EVEN SAYING SHE WOULD "STEP OVER HIS PRONE BODY AND REFUSE TO CALL FOR HELP" TO AN MTABE OFFICIAL.
GREAT JOB
CB1 the community board from hell.
Bitterman is a well paid stooge!
If she feels that she works too hard and is underpaid, then let her resign!
She's an enabler!
Corruption flourishes at CB#7 because she remains silent on what goes on behind all of those closed door meetings.
Somebody's tongue is far enough up Bitterman's ass to tickle her tonsils!
TROLL!
Ask her about the family trip to Toronto.
Didn't Wellington Chen "advise" them?
Isn't Chen's good pals, at one of the TDC companies a travel service?
Hasn't TDC (of Flushing Commons, Willets Point) come before CB#7?
YES!
Follow the money trail!
If M.B. isn't part of the problem, she's certainly NOT a part of its solution either!
Dump the recently appointed Pauline (Pau Lin) Chu!
She phonied up her position as an "educator" when she made a run for the city council!
Wasn't she just a librarian who lied about which college she graduated from?
These are the kind of people that boro hall stacks the boards with...obedient puppets..who will automatically rubber stamp ANY development project!
Tommy Huang was once on CB#7!
He simultaneously "served" on the "Downtown Flushing Development Corp." which Donald Manes set up as a boondoggle corporation.
Myra Baird Herce, we believe, was its executive director while she served as chair of CB#7.
Myra's still around (of sorts) currently claiming the co-directorship (?) of the Flushing Chamber of Commerce (and Business Association)".
Their letterhead still lists members who are deceased or have long ago moved to Florida.
But Myra "hearse" still haunts the halls at CB#7 meetings.
She'll be the death of Flushing.
I wonder what her Chamber salary is?
I wonder who pays it?
Wellington Chen...maybe?
community board 11 mgr. always answers,we don't have the money" ? while bayside roads and curbing disintegrate.
then the d.o.t's BIKE-O PSYCHO ,SADIE KAHN.spends a fortune on bike lanes,special concrete and steel enforced curbing under bridges, that no one rides a bike on ,in l.i.c..
the total project cost at bridge plaza(two death curve) is estimated to be $46,000,000.00.
Marilyn Bitterman's interest is in keeping her $85,000 a year job not in serving her community!
She'll continue to look the other way while the Chuck & Gene show continues its crooked run!
She won't get paid her 85 Gs anymore the minute she blows the whistle on this corrupt board.
A lot of folks think that Marilyn is dumb as a post but she's really smart as paint.
She knows every dance step that keeps her in her job.
Fumigate CB#7!
DUMP ALL COMMUNITY BOARDS!!
I think people from all over Queens need to get together and compare notes.
We are not getting a fair deal and when you go to CB meetings in other boroughs it becomes painfully obvious.
The day when your local pol decides everything has to stop.
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